Chattanoah

A lot of you know, but I recently bought a 190k hardtop 5-speed 1992 SC300 (quite a gem) for a good price. Buying it, I knew there were things that needed work (P/S, rotors, and e-brake everything) which I took to my mechanic since they're key safety features and I don't have a *ton* of wrench time under my belt (I know I could have done it but that's the route I chose).

So driving it more, I realize it doesn't love high interstate speeds (maybe various bearings/bushings, and def tranny mounts, which I can do, but parts cost $). AND, the previous warranty for the power steering is not working out , so I'm going to have to cover THAT as well. It's just the pump that's leaking, so at the absolute worst I can buy my own part and get the shop to do labor (most likely route). So by the end of this, at best I have a great running Lexus and have put in $1k-1500 on top of the original price...

IN SHORT, have I gotten myself into something that's not worth it? I know this is a special car and I love it, but... I don't know. Just kind of feel like I'm in thought Limbo or something. And no, I'm not asking any of you to buy this car off of me... for now... I honestly am just about positive I'm keeping it, but I definitely wouldn't mind good input (and yes, even encouragement hahaha)

Any thoughts or tips for this situation or from similar experiences?




PS- is this even the appropriate place/topic for this question? lol

Chattanoah

Here she is for the curious... I think she's a beaut'. EDIT: Stupid auto pic rotation... you get the point ha.

Tabaka

iTrader: (8)

These cars are currently in a state where you'll have to put in wrench time. Sorry, it's just reality. Unless you have a mechanic friend that's giving you the deal of a lifetime on labor, you'll have to roll up the sleeves when available. My 0.02 cents, sell that heap to someone who is willing to fix it and buy a newer car with less issues. Maybe a newer IS2/350 or a new GS is better for you. If you would prefer a two door, look at the IS coupe or the RC. Yes, the payments are going to be $400+, but you're talking about a lot of money to constantly repair your '92 vehicle in which you're not going to maintain yourself.

mikef

iTrader: (3)

wow, can we see some more pics inside and out?

Chattanoah

To be honest, I don't have a problem working on it myself (in fact I'd love to), just with it being my DD I wanted the safety related components (P/S, brakes) done absolutely right. Honestly, I thinking I should just tough it out and keep working on it. Because it's close, it's just a few more things that need TLC.

Thanks for the thoughts

Chattanoah

Those are pretty much all I've got right now. I'm going to do build thread sooner than later, so keep an eye out! (if that doesn't say I'm already sort of making up my mind about what to do with my beloved JDM Bertha... lol)

Champa99

I just bought me a 99" sandstone and I love it ,even if I only driven it about 3 times and one of the times was taking it to the body shop.. Getting fresh paint on it.. Anybody who tells u to sell, are not looking at it for war it is!!! A Classic Car one of the Best Coups ever Made!! In time you well get your money back !! When their sought after even more than now ..So keep it up I know I am

Duck05

If the interior is in decent shape (say an 8 out of 10) you are ahead of the game.

A '92 with a 190K is on the edge of some maintenance and parts starting to wear out. Even if you have the time and skills to do the work the parts investment can be steep (but well worth it if you have the patience and a plan).

Take some time and space out the list to spread the costs out (unless you have deep pockets and can afford it in a short time frame).

Good luck with your car; it does look nice from the few pictures you posted.

Asha'man

iTrader: (1)

You need to learn to wrench on your own stuff. These cars are old enough yet cheap enough that it's a fool's errand to pay a mechanic to do anything on them. Unless you really have your head stuffed up your ***, they're pretty easy cars to work on and basic wrenching techniques will get you pretty far. Personally, I don't trust anyone but myself to do the important things like brakes and steering, so I know every bit of what's there and what was done.

Look through the build thread link in my sig on my hardtop five speed SC300 if you're looking for a little inspiration.

Asha'man

iTrader: (1)

Oh, and how much did you pay for the car? You can't realistically expect to buy a car for less than (I'd say) five grand and not have to put at least a few hundred bucks into it. Doesn't necessarily mean you made a bad choice, just means you bought a used car.

Chattanoah

I appreciate the advice, thank you! I've always been good with my hands, I've done a bit of work on cars, the issue is less about "if I can do it" and more of just not having much opportunity to work on cars in the past (one of the reason I bought this one).

And FTR, I bought it for $4k (freaking sweet, right?). Part of my woes is that I sold my first reliable and ever beloved truck for this one, so I go through values in my head and start wondering if I did something dumb.

Something I've been learning lately, money is meant to be spent and materials are meant to be used. I'm becoming a much happier man as I loosen my grip on things I can't control... I digress. Thanks again!

KahnBB6

iTrader: (5)

Chattanoah, you may well have some repairs ahead of you within the next 50k miles but that is indeed a rare SC300 and also a very good car. Service will be needed here and there but you will see firsthand how long the bones of these cars can last for hundreds of thousands of miles. Every older car with some years and miles will need some maintenance and TLC.

I do not think it's unreasonable to put $1500 into your $4000 SC just after you've bought it. Tabaka is right that around this mileage a few things tend to require attention but it will all be manageable. And a good chunk of it you absolutely can learn to service yourself with a factory service manual (PDF).

My policy is always to try to do what I can myself and make a judgement call as to what I will send to a trusted shop or dealer. For instance, I'm getting a leaky rear diff pinion seal serviced on Monday at a local driveline shop that was recommended to me by a trusted source. That I am not going to do myself.

Ignition service, top end emission, intake and sensor service and all manner of little things in the engine bay... those and more I will do myself. I used to do my own brake service too when I had a garage.

Start small and simple with the TSRM and work from there.

Also, never just buy parts from your local Lexus dealer. Cross-reference your engine and transmission parts especially for a 93-94 Supra Non-Turbo 5-speed manual (almost the same W58 your car has), use several Toyota and Lexus Trademotion online sales departments many dealers operate (ie: buy from them online for cheaper prices on parts), use Rockauto, densoparts.com, Driftmotion, occasionally ebay, use the CL classifieds, etc.

Being creative at sourcing your parts is key just the same as becoming proficient at basic service and diagnosis. You do not have to become an expert at everything but you would be surprised at how much you can do yourself to maintain your SC300.

And the engine bays are very easy to worth with. The 2JZ-GE is a long engine but there is ample room to work.

Penthos

iTrader: (1)

Don't worry man. Keep working on her. I don't have much wrench time either honestly I bought my 93 sc400 for 2k and right now I'm about 7.6k in on repairs, labor, paint, and body restoration, and that's without mod parts. Add mods and it's somewhere near 12k. But that's because I bought a cheap one that I had to bring back to life. She's very close to operating perfect too. Keep going.

Sactolex

I'm in a similar situation with my 92 400.

It needs the following for sure:
Timing Belt/water pump job (92k right now on originals; but its non interference so i may just wait)$900
Front LCA/UCA (this is expensive.....suspension is kinda okay but def. not awesome) $800
Power Steering Rack/bushings (boots leaking, worried about contaminants killing the PS pump but holding off still) $200 aftermarket
Valve Cover leakage $200

Probably needs to be done:
Motor mounts (hard shifts between park/reverse/D) $150
Shocks/struts (no leaking, but they are original) $300
Rear main seal (seems to leak a tiny bit; have added heavier weight oil and seems to not leak anymore) $800
tie rods/end links/suspension parts replacement $400
ECU repair (no obvious symptoms except old age supposedly breaks capacitors and it seems kind of slow, slower than it probably should be) $200
trunk/hood struts (low priority) $100

seems to burn 1 quart of oil between changes (3k miles)

that's a good $3-4k in parts and labor (timing belt i WON'T touch myself). Considering if its worth doing, or selling and just buying a newer car for $6-7k cash. But then, that would come with its own list of repairs.

So......i'm just sitting and waiting. In the mean time, the car drives well enough and i am happy with it and may just do repairs as they become absolutely necessary.

I suppose I could sell off a SCAR17 and my M1A and cover the repairs....but I don't think I want to do that

O. L. T.

iTrader: (17)

Ahhh, so you're the new SC in town. I've passed it a couple times on my bike. You like this car? Not good enough. You gotta love it, or sell it.

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sc-...-doctrine.html

Read that, buy you a new set of wrenches, and get creative with your solutions. That's how you own this car. Will you like this car? I'd like to say yes, but profiling your posts, probably not unless you have an endless wallet. You bought a 5 speed car in as good of shape as you could find it to drive it to "maximum miles per gallon" as stated in your shifting thread. That means you are nitpicky, ocd, and won't do half the fixes suggested by anyone around here to keep it running that *work* but are by no means going to let your ocd rest peacefully for the pretty nickel you paid for a good condition car that as a sporty 5 speed doesn't fit your posts. In the same thread you asked when the proper shift points were and any ENTHUSIAST around here will tell you "When its rattles on the redline". It's lighter than any other SC, no leather, no sunroof, and a 5 speed. You're asking how to achieve maximum MPG and what waxes to use. You should have bought an SC400 to give you the down low grunt sound and feel at a similar MPG to an SC300 and you would have had a car more suited to your tastes / needs.

You bought this one though, so as I said before..... Love it or sell it before it eats you into the poor house. If you love it you'll feel good about the change you're about to drop into it, and you WILL be doing so for reasons listed above. I wish we had more people around here like the old days that could buy one of these and just have an issue here and there that kept them driving this machine, but they are too old and becoming too fragile for OCD youth to buy and enjoy. I don't think THIS Lexus is the right choice for you, but I do hope you'll hang in there through the issues that you experience and enjoy it.